Asher (A Wesley Brothers Novel Book 3)

by Michelle Smith

  Fuck, this is good.

  Sloan eyes me over his own fork. “Liar.” He smirks when I glare at him, but I don't comment, instead choosing another forkful of food over confrontation.

  “Where did this come from? It's fucking delicious.”

  Sloan eyes me again for a few seconds. “The little Italian bistro on the corner. And don't change the subject.” He forks a helping of pasta from his own box. “Is something going on with you two?”

  Releasing a sigh as I fork some of the salad, my irritation begins to dissipate. It's not Sloan I'm angry with, it's myself. He's only trying to help. “We got into an argument and I haven't seen or heard from her in almost a week.”

  Sloan's brow creases before he asks, “What did you do?”

  I roll my eyes. “Why do you assume it's my fault? Can't it be her fault?”

  Sloan's fork stops mid-stab in his salad, and he simply stares at me.

  A crease forms in his brow. He blinks once.

  Waits.

  He blinks again.

  Defeated, I drop my eyes and push around the lettuce in my container. “Okay, fine. It was my fault. Happy?”

  He shakes his head. “No. I don't like seeing you upset. Wanna talk about it?”

  No.

  But I will anyway.

  Without going into too much detail, I tell him, “Kara wanted to go to a party, and I told her she couldn't do it.”

  “You tried to tell her what not to do? Seriously? Have you learned nothing in this family?” When I don’t answer him right away, he slides his chair to the side and grabs two water bottles from the small fridge he keeps there. Passing one over, he asks me, “Do you remember when dad told mom she couldn't go on that women's retreat a few years back because it was the same weekend as one of his law functions? What did she do?”

  The memory brings a smile to my face. It was the first and last time dad ever tried telling mom what she could or couldn’t do. “She called him from the airport right before she boarded her flight and told him never try to pull that shit with her again.”

  Sloan smiles too, because it’s a popular story for my parents to tell at dinner parties. We've probably heard it a dozen times.

  “Right. So, what made you think Kara would be any different? If I pulled something like that with Lizzy, I'd be spending the night at your place until she decided to let me back in the house.”

  The visual gets another chuckle out of me. “I knew the minute the words were out of my mouth I should never have said them, but it was too late. I couldn’t take it back, and when she started getting persistent about it, I dug my heels in deeper.” Sloan looks at me, and I let out a long sigh. “I’m an idiot.”

  A smirk crosses his face. “Nah, you’re not an idiot. You’re in love.”

  I don’t even bother to argue. “Same thing.”

  Sloan chuckles, shaking his head. “Eat your food. You’re gonna need your energy for all the groveling you’re going to do to get your girl back.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Kara

  “Are you sure you didn’t mind coming to lunch with me today?” Sticking my menu back into the holder, I grab Nora’s and do the same with it.

  “Of course not. I’m always up for a little girl talk.” Though I didn’t give her any specifics, I asked Nora if we could talk over lunch today and she immediately changed her plans to do so. I felt bad about the last-minute change and even worse when I found out she and Sloan had already placed their lunch order delivery from the Italian place by our building, but Kendra was working, and I didn’t want to risk seeing Ash in his office. I know he’ll want to talk to me about everything and I’m not ready yet. I’m still upset with him. Nora was my only other option. She’s become a good friend in the recent weeks and I think she might be able to give me some insight into Ash’s personality.

  She assured me it was fine, but I insisted she pick the place to eat since I changed her plans last minute, my treat. Never one to miss an opportunity to see her sexy husband in the middle of the workday—her words, not mine—she decided to come to Cade’s.

  “So, what did you want to talk about? Since you didn’t give me any specifics in front of Sloan, I’m going to assume this has something to do with Ash.” She takes a sip of her caffeine-free soda, eyeing me over the rim of her glass, waiting for my answer. I don’t give one, but the expression on my face must give me away. “Tell me, girl. What did he do?”

  Blowing out a breath, I spill like she asks me to. “We got into a stupid argument almost a week ago and we haven’t talked since.”

  “What happened?”

  Ugh. How do I say this without giving too much away? His family doesn’t know about the parties or that Ash participates in them. It’s not my place to tell Nora about it now either. “Long story short, I wanted to go somewhere and he flat-out told me I couldn’t do it.”

  “Why would he say you couldn’t go?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t think he was really thinking when he said it. I could tell by the look on his face he wished he could take it back, but he didn’t. And when I pushed the issue, it seemed to make him even more upset.” I shift in my seat, putting my arms on the table and leaning forward toward Nora. “Is he like this? I mean, he’s never acted this way before and I’ve never gotten the vibe that he’s controlling since we’ve been together, but it really pissed me off that he would try to tell me I couldn’t do something. You’ve known him longer than me. Is this typical for him?”

  Nora ponders my question for a bit. “I’ve never seen him act that way. Ash is the most easy-going of his brothers, so he must have felt strongly about it to put his proverbial foot down. Do you mind if I ask what it was?”

  I leave out as many details as I can. “There’s this party I wanted to go to. When I mentioned going, he told me I couldn’t. I even told him I wanted him to come with me, and he still stood by his answer.”

  “Oh, boy.” Nora rolls her eyes. “I hope you put him in his place.” A grin pulls at her lips.

  “You’re damn right, I did. And I told him to let himself out of my apartment and I went to the bedroom. I didn’t come out until he was gone.” Her sympathetic look spurs me to keep talking. “Ugh. I’m upset for no reason, aren’t I?”

  “No way.” Nora’s quick to jump to my defense. “You have every right to be angry. He has no right to dictate what you do. You both know that, I just don’t think Ash was thinking clearly.” She’s one hundred percent right, but I still hold some of the blame.

  “Yeah, but I shouldn’t be so stubborn.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “This has been going on almost a week, Nora. He texted me the first night—hell, within hours—asking me to talk to him, give him a chance to apologize. I wanted to, I really did, but I was upset.” What I don’t tell her is how hurt I was when Ash told me I didn’t belong there. “I finally texted him back and told him if he wasn’t going to change his mind about the party, then I wasn’t going to change my mind about talking to him.” Tears begin to prick behind my eyes, but I fight them back. I will not cry in the middle of her husband’s bar. “I haven’t heard from him since.”

  “Maybe it’s a good thing.” When I start to protest, she motions for me to hear her out. “You both needed some time to cool down. I’m sure if you both sit down together you can work it all out. I see the way Ash is with you. And I see how happy you are with him. You guys are good together. Trust me. It’s all going to work out.”

  She can’t promise me things will turn out okay but hearing those words from someone who knows Ash better than I do calms my nerves, even the slightest bit. It allows me to take a true, deep breath and relax, even if it’s only for a few minutes. She’s right. Things will be okay. It’s our first, real disagreement in this relationship, but it’s one not worth me losing him over.

  He’s too special.

  Too important.

  And the fact that I’m totally in love with him doesn’t hurt either.
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  “You beautiful ladies waiting on some food?”

  Cade’s voice pulls me back to the present. His smile is beaming, his gaze directed solely on his wife who smiles right back. I was so lost in my thoughts. I never even saw him walk up.

  He flips open the tray stand next to the table and places the tray of food on top of it.

  “Hey, Kara.”

  “Hey.” He focuses his attention back to his wife, and the two get lost in their own little world for a few minutes while he puts the plates of food down onto the table. While they talk, I pull my cell phone out of my purse, intent on shooting a text to Ash telling him I’m ready to talk if he is, but there’s already a text from him waiting for me.

  Ash: I can’t even begin to tell you how sorry I am. Please let me say it in person.

  My heart leaps at his words and I struggle to fight back the tears again, typing my response.

  Me: Only if you give me the chance to do the same.

  The three dots appear immediately while I wait.

  Ash: You have nothing to apologize for. How about I come to your place today after work, around seven? I’ll grab some take out and we can talk before we eat. Does that sound okay?

  It sounds more than okay, and I make sure to tell him. I miss him so much. I have half a mind to jump up and run to him now, but I’ve already ruined this woman’s lunch one time today. I’m not about to do it again. And there is also that thing called work I still need get back to.

  Slipping my phone back into my purse, I focus my attention on Nora and Cade. Nora’s looking at me, a smile on her face. I’m not sure how long she was watching, but my guess would be while I was texting Ash. Though she can’t be sure who it was, the happiness on my face surely gives me away. I share a silent smile with her and she turns back to her husband.

  When Cade heads back to work, Nora and I dig into our food, the weight on my shoulders lighter than it has been in days.

  ***

  I hear the rumble of his motorcycle as he pulls into the parking lot. My first inclination is to take off out the door and run into his arms, like some climactic scene from a movie, but I don’t want to seem overeager. I check myself in the mirror again one last time. I’m second-guessing my decision not to get all dressed up to see him. I decided to go casual, wearing my favorite pair of soft yoga pants and an oversized T-shirt.

  I adjust the hair tie holding my hair and worry my teeth across my bottom lip. My toes dig into the plush carpet, my heart thumping at a faster rhythm as I wait for him to knock.

  And then he does.

  Not wanting to give away my excitement to see him, I wait a beat before unlocking the deadbolt and opening the door. But the moment I see him, I lose all sense of the cool, calm, and collected I had been fighting so hard for.

  His arms catch me as I dive into them, his lips finding mine with purpose. His arms wrap tightly around me, the bag of takeout bumping against my back as he holds me close, but I don’t care. I’ve missed his lips, I’ve missed his touch, I’ve missed him.

  It’s only been almost a week, but it feels a hell of a lot longer than that. It feels like an eternity.

  He pulls back from the kiss, both of us breathless, his blue eyes focused intently on mine as his free hand traces the softness of my cheek.

  “Hey,” he all but whispers, a smile pulling at his lips.

  “I love you,” I blurt out, because let’s face it, why would my filter around this man pick now to start working?

  The words are out before I can stop them, but in truth, I don’t really want to keep them in any longer.

  His smile grows wider as he releases a small exhale, but I don’t give him the chance to speak before more pours from my mouth. “I’m sorry I gave you a hard time about the party. I don’t even care about the party, I just want to be with you.”

  He’s already shaking his head before I even finish with my sentence. “Don’t apologize, Kara. You have nothing to be sorry for. This is all my fault. I’m the one who tried to tell you what to do, and I never should have done that. This isn’t even about the party, it’s bigger than that.”

  “Yeah, but if I hadn’t been pushing, you never would have thought you needed to tell me not to go. And for the record, I only wanted to go with you. I never would have gone on my own. I don’t want to be with anybody else, I only want to be with you.

  “Baby, stop and listen for a sec. You have nothing to apologize for.” When I start to argue again, Ash places a finger over my lips to keep me quiet. He steps farther inside the doorway and closes it behind him. “Come sit.” He puts the takeout bag on my coffee table and sits down on my sofa, pulling me down into his lap. “This is my hang-up, not yours. There used to be this girl I really liked. We’d only gone out a few times, but I thought—at the time—it had potential to turn into something more. I told her about the parties Lane threw, and —like you—she wanted me to take her.”

  I think I can see where he’s going with this, but I don’t interrupt.

  “So, I did. I can promise you, she very much had an interest in being with other people, with or without me. Soon enough, it was only without me. Ever since then, I don’t talk about them with women I go out with. At least not with the ones I meet aside from the parties, which is why I didn’t tell you.” Ash’s hand slides up to my face, cupping my cheek in his warm palm. “Kara, I love you too much to risk losing you the same way. I was scared you’d want the same thing she did, and it was a stupid knee-jerk reaction to tell you I didn’t want you to go, to say you couldn’t go. I wish I could take back, but I can’t. I know you wouldn’t do the same thing she did.”

  “You love me?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? I tried to tell you what to do like a fool. It must be love if I was that stupid.”

  A laugh bubbles out of me, but it quickly turns into a moan as Ash’s lips find mine again, his tongue sweeping inside. Tugging me against him, he repositions me on his lap, my legs straddling his waist, my knees digging into the soft cushions of the sofa.

  Sinking all my weight onto him, I grind against him as we kiss, feeling his cock grow hard behind his jeans. His hands slide over my ass, up my back, and up to my head, pulling the hair tie down and out of my hair. He tosses it to the side, digging his hands into the long tresses as he moves me with his rhythm. My hands grasp for purchase anywhere they can, but the couch doesn’t afford much room to do the things I think we both want.

  “Bedroom,” I mumble to him between kisses, but he doesn’t answer with words. Effortlessly, Ash scoots us to the edge of the sofa and stands, lifting me in one smooth motion. With only memory guiding his way as he rains kisses over me, he slowly takes us down the hall to the bedroom with me in his arms.

  “I can walk, you know.” I tease.

  He shakes his head. “I haven’t touched you in days, baby. I’m not letting you go.”

  “I can live with that,” I tell him, as his knees hit the mattress. He breaks the kiss long enough to lay me down onto the bed before climbing over me, the heat and warmth of his body pressing into mine.

  “Oh, what about the food?” Now’s not really the time to worry about it, but the question popped in my head and it came out.

  A smirk pulls at his lips. “Sandwiches from the deli, they’ll be fine. Unless, of course, you’d rather go eat first?”

  “Don’t you dare stop.”

  “Not a chance in hell.”

  His lips find me again, but this time they don’t linger long. They travel over to my cheek and up to kiss first one closed eyelid, then the other. When I open them again, his beautiful face hovers above mine. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” God it feels amazing to say those words to him.

  He places another soft, chaste against my lips before trailing them down over my chin and throat. My hands fist in his T-shirt which is still in place, and Ash sits up on his knees to take care of it. Tugging his shirt over his head, he tosses it onto the floor and begins unbuttoning his jeans.
He abandons the task at hand to remove my shirt and unclasps my bra, pulling the straps down my arms until it’s clear of my body.

  Standing at the foot of the bed, I prop myself up on my elbows and watch as he kicks his sneakers off and tugs down his jeans and underwear down his strong, muscular thighs. Shucking his socks too, Ash stands before me completely naked, the dips and bulges of his muscles making my mouth water. I itch to touch him, to feel him inside me. The anticipation is driving me crazy with need.

  Ash hooks his fingers into the waistband of my yoga pants, grabbing the edges of my panties along with it. In one smooth motion, he turns both inside out as he slides them down my legs, leaving me sprawled on the bed naked in front of him.

  “Beautiful.”

  His voice is almost a whisper when he says it, and I honestly think he was saying it more to himself than to me. Ash grabs his wallet off the floor and takes out a condom, tearing it open, and rolling it over his hardened length. Anticipation makes the act seem like it takes forever, but with practiced efficiency he puts it in place and directs his attention back to me.

  He climbs back onto the bed, the warm heat of his body enveloping me again. Resting his weight on one elbow, Ash slides his hand down my body and between my legs. “Are you wet for me, baby?”

  A groan spills from my lips as he releases one too. “Fuck, baby. You’re so ready for me.” Ash shifts again on the bed as my knees drop open to allow him the space he needs. Using his knees to open me further, Ash grips his cock and runs it through my wetness before pushing the tip in. Inch by inch, pushing and retreating, Ash works himself inside me until his hips are flush with mine.

  My feet come up around his waist as he pulls his dick out to the tip and slides back in, grinding into me when he bottoms out. My pussy clenches around him as he repeats the action. I won’t last long if he keeps up this torturous pace, but he’s in no hurry to speed things up.